Rep. Tim Ryan (D., Ohio) said Wednesday that Democrats should try to be "willing partners" where possible with President Donald Trump.
Ryan appeared on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," where reporter Carol Lee asked him what he thought about Democrats cutting deals with Trump.
Democratic leaders Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) angered some on the left with their recent reported agreements with Trump on immigration and the debt ceiling, while others praised them for making the best out of their minority standing.
"I don't think you need to violate your values in the process, but I think we should try to be willing partners," Ryan said. "We've got to get the political process moving forward here and no one's going to get what they want 100 percent of the time, so I think it's encouraging that people are at least having conversations."
Ryan then referenced diabetes and income equality as important issues that Congress must tackle in future years.
"We've got to figure out how we're going to solve some of these problems and we can't do it, everybody going on their own, same with the speech at the UN," Ryan said. "You can't do this stuff alone. These problems are too big, so we have to come together and I'm encouraged by it."
Ryan has been a critic of Republicans and Democrats alike, questioning his own party's message on the economy, the Washington Free Beacon reported:
"What I want the Democratic Party to be is to be a party that can set an agenda to try to deal with those issues that will drive up wages, help people to be able to afford college and health care and all the rest," Ryan said.
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"We can't just be the party of redistribution of wealth," Ryan said. "We've got to be the party of creation of wealth."